Phrasal verbs are usually two-word phrases consisting of verb + adverb or verb + preposition. Think of them as you would any other English vocabulary. Study them as you come across them, rather than trying to memorize many at once. Use the list below as a reference guide when you find an expression that you don't recognize. The examples will help you understand the meanings. If you think of each phrasal verb as a separate verb with a specific meaning, you will be able to remember it more easily. Like many other verbs, phrasal verbs often have more than one meaning.
As well as learning their meanings, you need to learn how to use phrasal verbs properly. Some phrasal verbs require a direct object (someone/something), while others do not. Some phrasal verbs can be separated by the object, while others cannot.
Verb / Meaning / Exampleasksomeoneout / invite on a date / Brian asked Judy out to dinner and a movie.
askaround / ask many people the same question / I asked around but nobody has seen my wallet.
add up tosomething / equal / Your purchases add up to $205.32.
backsomethingup / reverse / You'll have to back up your car so that I can get out.
backsomeoneup / support / My wife backed me up over my decision to quit my job.
blow up / explode / The racing car blew up after it crashed into the fence.
blowsomethingup / add air / We have to blow 50 balloons up for the party.
break down / stop functioning (vehicle, machine) / Our car broke down at the side of the highway in the snowstorm.
break down / getupset / The woman broke down when the police told her that her son had died.
breaksomethingdown / divide intosmallerparts / Our teacher broke the final project down into three separate parts.
break in / force entry to a building / Somebody broke in last night and stole our stereo.
break intosomething / enterforcibly / The firemen had to break into the room to rescue the children.
breaksomethingin / wear something a few times so that it doesn't look/feel new / I need to break these shoes in before we run next week.
break in / interrupt / The TV station broke in to report the news of the president's death.
break up / end a relationship / My boyfriend and I broke up before I moved to America.
break up / startlaughing (informal) / The kids just broke up as soon as the clown started talking.
break out / escape / The prisoners broke out of jail when the guards weren't looking.
break out insomething / develop a skincondition / I broke out in a rash after our camping trip.
bringsomeonedown / makeunhappy / This sad music is bringing me down.
bringsomeoneup / raise a child / My grandparents brought me up after my parents died.
bringsomethingup / start talking about a subject / My mother walks out of the room when my father brings up sports.
callaround / phone many different places/people / We called around but we weren't able to find the car part we needed.
callsomeoneback / return a phonecall / I called the company back but the offices were closed for the weekend.
callsomethingoff / cancel / Jason called the wedding off because he wasn't in love with his fiancé.
callonsomeone / ask for an answer or opinion / The professor called on me for question 1.
callonsomeone / visitsomeone / We called on you last night but you weren't home.
callsomeoneup / phone / Give me your phone number and I will call you up when we are in town.
calmdown / relax afterbeingangry / You are still mad. You need to calm down before you drive the car.
not care forsomeone/something / notlike (formal) / I don't care for his behaviour.
catch up / get to the same point as someone else / You'll have to run faster than that if you want to catch up with Marty.
check in / arrive and register at a hotel or airport / We will get the hotel keys when we check in.
checkout / leave a hotel / You have to check out of the hotel before 11:00 AM.
checksomeone/somethingout / look at carefully, investigate / The company checks out all new employees.
checkoutsomeone/something / look at (informal) / Check out the crazy hair on that guy!
cheer up / becomehappier / She cheered up when she heard the good news.
cheersomeoneup / makehappier / I brought you some flowers to cheer you up.
cleansomethingup / tidy, clean / Please clean up your bedroom before you go outside.
come acrosssomething / findunexpectedly / I came across these old photos when I was tidying the closet.
come apart / separate / The top and bottom come apart if you pull hard enough.
come downwithsomething / becomesick / My nephew came down with chicken pox this weekend.
come forward / volunteer for a task or to give evidence / The woman came forward with her husband's finger prints.
come fromsomewhere / originate in / The art of origami comes from Asia.
countonsomeone/something / relyon / I am counting on you to make dinner while I am out.
crosssomethingout / draw a line through / Please cross out your old address and write your new one.
cut back onsomething / consume less / My doctor wants me to cut back on sweets and fatty foods.
cutsomethingdown / make something fall to the ground / We had to cut the old tree in our yard down after the storm.
cut in / interrupt / Your father cut in while I was dancing with your uncle.
cut in / pull in too closely in front of another vehicle / The bus driver got angry when that car cut in.
cut in / start operating (of an engine or electrical device) / The air conditioner cuts in when the temperature gets to 22°C.
cutsomethingoff / removewithsomethingsharp / The doctors cut off his leg because it was severely injured.
cutsomethingoff / stop providing / The phone company cut off our phone because we didn't pay the bill.
cutsomeoneoff / take out of a will / My grandparents cut my father off when he remarried.
cutsomethingout / remove part of something (usually with scissors and paper) / I cut this ad out of the newspaper.
dosomeone/somethingover / beat up, ransack (Br.E., informal) / He's lucky to be alive. His shop was done over by a street gang.
dosomethingover / doagain (N.Amer.) / My teacher wants me to do my essay over because she doesn't like my topic.
dosomethingup / fasten, close / Do your coatup before you go outside. It'ssnowing!
dress up / wearniceclothing / It's a fancy restaurant so we have to dress up.
drop back / move back in a position/group / Andrea dropped back to third place when she fell off her bike.
drop in/by/over / come withoutanappointment / I might drop in/by/over for tea sometime this week.
dropsomeone/somethingoff / take someone/something somewhere and leave them/it there / I have to drop my sister off at work before I come over.
dropout / quit a class, school etc / I dropped out of Science because it was too difficult.
eatout / eat at a restaurant / I don't feel like cooking tonight. Let'seatout.
end up / eventuallyreach/do/decide / We ended up renting a movie instead of going to the theatre.
fallapart / break intopieces / My new dress fell apart in the washing machine.
falldown / falltotheground / The picture that you hung up last night fell down this morning.
fallout / separatefroman interior / The money must have fallen out of my pocket.
fallout / (of hair, teeth) become loose and unattached / His hair started to fall out when he was only 35.
figuresomethingout / understand, findtheanswer / I need to figure out how to fit the piano and the bookshelf in this room.
fillsomethingin / to write information in blanks (Br.E.) / Please fill in the form with your name, address, and phone number.
fillsomethingout / to write information in blanks (N.Amer.) / The form must be filled out in capital letters.
fillsomethingup / filltothe top / I always fill the water jug up when it is empty.
findout / discover / We don't know where he lives. How can we find out?
findsomethingout / discover / We tried to keep the time of the party a secret, but Samantha found it out.
getsomethingacross/over / communicate, makeunderstandable / I tried to get my point across/over to the judge but she wouldn't listen.
getalong/on / likeeachother / I was surprised how well my new girlfriend and my sister got along/on.
getaround / havemobility / My grandfather can get around fine in his new wheelchair.
getaway / goon a vacation / We worked so hard this year that we had to get away for a week.
getawaywithsomething / do without being noticed or punished / Jason always gets away with cheating in his maths tests.
get back / return / We got back from our vacation last week.
getsomethingback / receive something you had before / Liz finally got her Science notes back from my room-mate.
get back atsomeone / retaliate, takerevenge / My sister got back at me for stealing her shoes. She stole my favourite hat.
get back intosomething / become interested in something again / I finally got back into my novel and finished it.
getonsomething / steponto a vehicle / We're going to freeze out here if you don't let us get on the bus.
getoversomething / recover from an illness, loss, difficulty / I just got over the flu and now my sister has it.
getoversomething / overcome a problem / The company will have to close if it can't get over the new regulations.
get round tosomething / finally find time to do (N.Amer.: get around tosomething) / I don't know when I am going to get round to writing the thank you cards.
gettogether / meet (usually for social reasons) / Let's get together for a BBQ this weekend.
get up / getout of bed / I got up early today to study for my exam.
get up / stand / You should get up and give the elderly man your seat.
givesomeoneaway / reveal hidden information about someone / His wife gave him away to the police.
givesomeoneaway / take the bride to the altar / My father gave me away at my wedding.
givesomethingaway / ruin a secret / My little sister gave the surprise party away by accident.
givesomethingaway / give something to someone for free / The library was giving away old books on Friday.
givesomethingback / return a borroweditem / I have to give these skates back to Franz before his hockey game.
give in / reluctantly stop fighting or arguing / My boyfriend didn't want to go to the ballet, but he finally gave in.
givesomethingout / give to many people (usually at no cost) / They were giving out free perfume samples at the department store.
givesomethingup / quit a habit / I am giving up smoking as of January 1st.
give up / stop trying / My maths homework was too difficult so I gave up.
goaftersomeone / followsomeone / My brother tried to go after the thief in his car.
goaftersomething / try toachievesomething / I went after my dream and now I am a published writer.
goagainstsomeone / compete, oppose / We are going against the best soccer team in the city tonight.
goahead / start, proceed / Please go ahead and eat before the food gets cold.
go back / returnto a place / I have to go back home and get my lunch.
goout / leave home to go on a social event / We're going out for dinner tonight.
gooutwithsomeone / date / Jesse has been going out with Luke since they met last winter.
gooversomething / review / Please go over your answers before you submit your test.
goover / visitsomeonenearby / I haven't seen Tina for a long time. I think I'll go over for an hour or two.
gowithoutsomething / sufferlackordeprivation / When I was young, we went without winter boots.
growapart / stop being friends over time / My best friend and I grew apart after she changed schools.
grow back / regrow / My roses grew back this summer.
grow up / becomeanadult / When Jack grows up he wants to be a fireman.
growout ofsomething / gettoobigfor / Elizabeth needs a new pair of shoes because she has grown out of her old ones.
growintosomething / grow big enough to fit / This bike is too big for him now, but he should grow into it by next year.
handsomethingdown / give something used to someone else / I handed my old comic books down to my little cousin.
handsomethingin / submit / I have to hand in my essay by Friday.
handsomethingout / to distribute to a group of people / We will hand out the invitations at the door.
handsomethingover / give (usuallyunwillingly) / The police asked the man to hand over his wallet and his weapons.
hang in / stay positive (N.Amer., informal) / Hang in there. I'm sure you'll find a job very soon.
hangon / wait a short time (informal) / Hang on while I grab my coat and shoes!
hangout / spend time relaxing (informal) / Instead of going to the party we are just going to hang out at my place.
hang up / end a phonecall / He didn't say goodbye before he hung up.
holdsomeone/somethingback / preventfromdoing/going / I had to hold my dog back because there was a cat in the park.
holdsomethingback / hideanemotion / Jamie held back his tears at his grandfather's funeral.
holdon / wait a short time / Please hold on while I transfer you to the Sales Department.
holdontosomeone/something / hold firmly using your hands or arms / Hold onto your hat because it's very windy outside.
holdsomeone/somethingup / rob / A man in a black mask held the bank up this morning.
keepondoingsomething / continuedoing / Keep on stirring until the liquid comes to a boil.
keepsomethingfromsomeone / nottell / We kept our relationship from our parents for two years.
keepsomeone/somethingout / stop fromentering / Try to keep the wet dog out of the living room.
keepsomethingup / continue at the same rate / If you keep those results up you will get into a great college.
letsomeonedown / fail to support or help, disappoint / I need you to be on time. Don't let me down this time.
letsomeonein / allowtoenter / Can you let the cat in before you go to school?
look aftersomeone/something / takecare of / I have to look after my sick grandmother.
look downonsomeone / think less of, consider inferior / Ever since we stole that chocolate bar your dad has looked down on me.
look forsomeone/something / try tofind / I'm looking for a red dress for the wedding.
look forward tosomething / be excited about the future / I'm looking forward to the Christmas break.
look intosomething / investigate / We are going to look into the price of snowboards today.
look out / be careful, vigilant, and take notice / Look out! That car's going to hit you!
look out forsomeone/something / be especiallyvigilantfor / Don't forget to look out for snakes on the hiking trail.
looksomethingover / check, examine / Can you look over my essay for spelling mistakes?
looksomethingup / search and find information in a reference book or database / We can look her phone number up on the Internet.
look up tosomeone / have a lot of respect for / My little sister has always looked up to me.
makesomethingup / invent, lie aboutsomething / Josie made up a story about why we were late.
make up / forgiveeachother / We were angry last night, but we made up at breakfast.
makesomeoneup / applycosmeticsto / My sisters made me up for my graduation party.
mixsomethingup / confuse two or more things / I mixed up the twins' names again!
passaway / die / His uncle passed away last night after a long illness.
passout / faint / It was so hot in the church that an elderly lady passed out.
passsomethingout / give the same thing to many people / The professor passed the textbooks out before class.
passsomethingup / decline (usuallysomethinggood) / I passed up the job because I am afraid of change.
paysomeoneback / returnowedmoney / Thanks for buying my ticket. I'll pay you back on Friday.
payforsomething / be punished for doing something bad / That bully will pay for being mean to my little brother.
picksomethingout / choose / I picked out three sweaters for you to try on.
pointsomeone/somethingout / indicatewithyourfinger / I'll point my boyfriend out when he runs by.
putsomethingdown / put what you are holding on a surface or floor / You can put the groceries down on the kitchen counter.
putsomeonedown / insult, make someone feel stupid / The students put the substitute teacher down because his pants were too short.
putsomethingoff / postpone / We are putting off our trip until January because of the hurricane.
putsomethingout / extinguish / The neighboursput the fire out before the firemen arrived.
putsomethingtogether / assemble / I have to put the crib together before the baby arrives.
put up withsomeone/something / tolerate / I don't think I can put up with three small children in the car.
putsomethingon / put clothing/accessories on your body / Don't forget to put on your new earrings for the party.
runintosomeone/something / meetunexpectedly / I ran into an old school-friend at the mall.
runoversomeone/something / drive a vehicle over a person or thing / I accidentally ran over your bicycle in the driveway.
runover/throughsomething / rehearse, review / Let's run over/through these lines one more time before the show.
runaway / leaveunexpectedly, escape / The child ran away from home and has been missing for three days.
runout / havenoneleft / We ran out of shampoo so I had to wash my hair with soap.
sendsomethingback / return (usuallyby mail) / My letter got sent back to me because I used the wrong stamp.
setsomethingup / arrange, organize / Our boss set a meeting up with the president of the company.